85: The Blitz

85 years ago today (September 7, 1940) the Germans started the Blitz over the United Kingdom.

(British Children in the East End of London, made homeless by the Blitz.)

This ended the Battle of Britain (July 10-September 6, 1940) in which the Germans bombed British military Targets to destroy the British Royal Air Force and to make the UK either sue for peace or be invaded by the Germans.

The Battle of Britian was fought between the Allies (British, Candian, Free French, Free Poles, Free Dutch, Free Belgians, Free Czechoslovaks, Australians, New Zealanders, South Africans and Newfounders) along with Volunteers from Neutral USA and Ireland against Germany.

The British won the Battle of Britain.

1,542 Allied Airmen died and 422 Allied Airmen were wounded during the Battle of Britain.

23,002 British Civilians were killed and 32,138 British Civilians were wounded during the Battle of Britain.

The Blitz lasted from September 7, 1940 -May 11, 1941.

The Germans bombed everything they could in the UK (Military Targets and Civilian Areas.)

They dropped 18,291 tons of bombs on London in 71 Air Raids over 8 months alone.

Besides London, the Germans also bombed: Liverpool (1,957 tons of bombs dropped), Hull, Bristol, Cardiff (115 tons of bombs dropped), Portsmouth, Plymouth, Southampton, Swansea, Belfast (440 tons of bombs dropped), Glasgow (1,329 tons of bombs dropped), Manchester (578 tons of bombs dropped), Coventry (818 tons of bombs dropped), Birmingham (1,852 tons of bombs dropped), etc.

The British used many kinds of Shelters to protect them from the German Air Raids: Basements, the Stations of the London Underground, Street Communal Shelters, Anderson Shelters (in people’s backyards with 3 million distributed) or a Morrison Shelter (a cage-like shelter kept inside the house for people in apartments or without a garden with ½ Million distributed.)

43,000 British Civilians were killed and 139,000 British Civilians were wounded during the Blitz.

The Blitz ended on May 11, 1941 and was a Strategic Defeat for Germany.

On June 13, 1944 the Germans launched their first Vergeltungswaffe-Eins (Revenge Weapon 1), or V-1 Rockets on London.

The V-1 Rockets required no crew, flew at a speed of 350 mph and when their buzzing noise stopped you had 12 seconds before the explosion.

10,492 V-1 Rockets landed in London from June 13-September 1, 1944 (1 every 2 hours for 81 Consecutive Days.)

6,184 Londoners were killed and 17,981 Londoners were wounded by the V-1 Rockets.

The last V-1 Rocket was launched in January 1945.

On September 7, 1944 the Germans launched their first Vergeltungswaffe 2 (Revenge Weapon 2) Rockets on London.

The V-2 Rockets travelled at supersonic speeds, impacted without audible warning, and proved unstoppable. No effective defense existed.

2,754 Londoners were killed and 6,523 Londoners were wounded by the V-2 Rockets.

The last V-2 Rocket hit London on March 27, 1945.